<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Snowdrifts by Lenami</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26232205">Snowdrifts</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lenami/pseuds/Lenami'>Lenami</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Gen, Happens when Tom went to ask Dumbledore for the job, Hogwarts Chamber of Secrets, Homesickness, Kinda, Melancholy, Memories, snowstorm</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 05:02:55</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,100</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26232205</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lenami/pseuds/Lenami</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Tom stepped out of the castle with regret so bitter, he could almost taste it on his tongue. That bitter part of him longed to come back to hide himself away in the castle, in his home, to be on one of those children tucked safely in their beds. The same part of him would always stay a hungry child, a raging teenager shivering on his father’s doorstep and he couldn’t wait to abandon it, to hide it away in Salazar’s locket like he hid his anger in the diary.<br/>.<br/>.<br/>.<br/>Tom comes back to Hogwarts after all those years to hide Rowena's tiara.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Basilisk &amp; Tom Riddle, Rubeus Hagrid &amp; Tom Riddle</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>11</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Snowdrifts</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I always thought that Tom in his mid-transformation into Voldemort was an extremely fascinating figure, so I wrote a little bit about it. The action happens when Tom went to ask Dumbledore for the position of teacher of defense against dark arts. It's kind of bizarre, but I hope someone can enjoy it too!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Tom stepped out of the castle with regret so bitter, he could almost taste it on his tongue. He accomplished more than he has ever planned to. He hid the diadem, yes, he did what he was supposed to do. Parting with the part of his soul wasn’t painful, but it felt like emptiness, like coldness, like death.</p><p>But that bitter part of him longed to come back to hide himself away in the castle, in his home, to be on one of those children tucked safely in their beds. The same part of him would always stay a hungry child, a raging teenager shivering on his father’s doorstep and he couldn’t wait to abandon it, to hide it away in Salazar’s locket like he hid his anger in the diary.</p><p>And he couldn’t bring himself to start walking immediately so he just stood there in the doorstep, freezing in the sea of snow. Snowflakes slowly gathered on his hair, on his eyelashes; it seemed like he already turned into ice. And there was something else, something else there with him- a hulking, massive figure approaching, walking slowly and with difficulty through the white turmoil.</p><p>He knew he should move, that he should avoid this figure, this man but he didn’t do anything.</p><p>“Tom.” Hagrid breathed as soon as he saw him- Tom cut long, thin silhouette on the whiteness of the snow. He stared at him with astonishment and disbelief.</p><p>“Rubeus.” Tom’s icy fingers curled at the edges of his sleeves. The howl of the wind filled the void between them until Tom spoke again:</p><p>“You must hate me.”</p><p>Hagrid still looked at him with his head tilted slightly, taking in all of the details; Tom’s sunken cheeks, his windblown hair, thin coat and fingers clenched tightly on the wand.</p><p>“No, I don’t hate you.” His voice was quiet, not like him at all. “You are such a lonely figure, Tom, I can feel it when I look at you.”</p><p>“You are so, so alone.” He repeated.</p><p>Tom didn’t quite know if those were words of forgiveness or pity and he shivered, once again not knowing if it was the cold or Hagrid’s words that caused it.</p><p>“I don’t know if it really makes a difference, Rubeus.” Wind pushed hair into his eyes and he brushed it back behind his ear impatiently.</p><p>“Are you cold?” Hagrid asked simply.</p><p>“I am.” Tom smiled faintly, hugging himself with his arms in poor attempt to protect himself from the wind.</p><p>“Come, then.”</p><p>And Tom followed, unsure about why exactly was he doing it. It was difficult to keep up with Hagrid’s enormous steps and Tom wobbled on his thin, long legs. Snowdrifts completely swallowed him. Hagrid lead him to his cottage, Tom came inside with relief. He took off the scarf and smoothed down his upturned collar as he felt warm, dry air on his face. Why was Hagrid doing this? He didn’t know and accepted that he would never understand it.</p><p>Hagrid gestured vaguely at the fireplace- it was probably meant to be inviting gesture and Tom sat by the fire on the old, creaking floorboard. Snowflakes on his clothing melted into the fabric; he grimaced at the touch of damp fabric against his skin. The warmth was overwhelming, burning his fingertips.</p><p>“Look at you, Tom, curled by the fire in half-breed’s house.” Hagrid said with a tone of mockery in his voice but there was genuine amusement beneath it, too and even Tom let out something that resembled a breathless laugh.</p><p>“You look starved.”</p><p>Anger spiked in Tom at those words but even he had to admit that he did look like a pitiful creature now, with his unkempt hair and jutting out ribs. Effect of horcuxes, he supposed.</p><p>“When we were at school you were shining and brilliant.”</p><p>“And look how it turned out for you.” Tom said with joyless mirth. “And by the way, I wasn’t. I always wore second-hand robes and each year I had to decide whether I was going to have new shoes or textbooks because I couldn't get both.”</p><p>He thought about visiting his father’s house again.</p><p>“Bitter, Tom?”</p><p>“Oh, yes. Aren’t you?”</p><p>“Sometimes.” Hagrid laughed soundlessly. “But it is too easy. No, I make effort.”</p><p>Tom felt something long forgotten when he heard those words- embarrassment. It twisted his insides and made him nauseous. He crammed it back from where it came from, swallowed it, but it turned his stomach.</p><p>“You can spend the night if you want to.” Hagrid said, getting up from the table with a heavy sight.</p><p>Tom nodded absently, more to himself than him.</p><p>He slept on the floor by the fire, curled under his own coat. It brought memory of the last night he spent like this, a long time ago.</p><p>
  <em>Christmas were awfully cold this year and Chamber of Secrets were even more icy than usual. Tom wore slippers, but it felt like he was barefoot. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Do you have a death wish, Tom?” Basilisk’s voice echoed in the chamber. “You closed the Chamber of Secrets.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“You know I had to.” He never lied in parseltongue. “They were going to close Hogwarts. I don’t think Salazar would like his school closed.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Tom shut his eyes when he heard the basilisk move.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“You don’t know what Salazar would like.” It laughed. “But you made your decision rightfully. I can understand. Closing school wouldn’t benefit me either.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>It slithered on the floor closer.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“The question remains, why are you here, Tom?”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“I couldn’t sleep.” He sat down on the icy floor of the Chamber, his eyes still closed.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>There was a silence at first and then the answer came:</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Do you wish for comfort, child? Do you long for your father, do you long for your mother?” </em>
</p><p>
  <em>“I do.” He whispered with overwhelming feeling of shame.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“You can sleep here, then.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Basilisk came even closer, curling his enormous body around him. Tom extended his hand to touch and felt warm, dry scales under his fingers. He rested his head against it. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Goodnight.” </em>
</p><p>Tom woke up with the sun and he left without goodbye- like he was expected to do. The storm went away and sun shone, almost painfully so, hurting his eyes. He almost ran through the sparkling, frozen snow, stumbling without grace. It felt like something chased him and he desperately need to flee from it. Snow swallowed all of the sounds beside his ragged breath.</p><p>And then, he fell. He fell into the snowdrift and turned to take one more, last look at the castle.</p><p>It was beautiful.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you for reading! I would be extremely thankful for any kudos or comments!</p><p>(I know I wrote it to be serious work but now when I look at it, the scene with basilisk kinda looks like this:<br/>Tom: mom, I can't sleep<br/>Basilisk: alright, you can sleep with me, son but just for one night<br/>lol, nevermind me)</p></blockquote></div></div>
</body>
</html>